Massachusetts is quite possibly the most backward thinking state in the union. State politicians seem to have forgotten that this is 2002 and not 1902. Because of some arcane rule, no candidate for Governor can get on the Democratic primary ballot unless they receive 15 percent of the vote at the state convention. This system - one of the most ridiculous and closed I have ever encountered - is keeping students out of the process.
The delegates for the convention are chosen in caucuses around the state in early February. These delegates then go to the convention in late May and vote for their candidate. Candidates who receive at least 15 percent of the vote at this convention are placed onto the ballot for the primary election, which occurs in September. The winner of the primary is then the Democratic nominee and is placed on the ballot in November.
The problem with this system is that the voters may not be able to choose which candidate they want. Instead, party insiders control the process and can keep out people who are challenging the system. Students are also barred from this system because traditionally they are not delegates at these conventions and are rarely organized enough to get involved.
Tufts students are almost never delegates. In fact, most are older, white, middle-class people who have been going to the state convention for 30 years. Students don't usually have large support networks which can go to party caucuses and vote for them as delegates. The districts are often gerrymandered in such a way that there aren't many students in the same district.
This year there are five Democratic candidates for Governor and so far only two of them have secured the 15 percent needed to get on the ballot in September. Warren Tolman, Steve Grossman, and Robert Reich still do not know if voters will even have the opportunity to vote for them.
These three candidates all have spoken at Tufts and each have a special connection to the University. Warren Tolman has an extensive campus organization and has a reform message that particularly appeals to students. Steve Grossman has been on campus numerous times and his wife, Barbara Grossman, is the Chair of the Drama Department here at Tufts. Robert Reich also has a campus organization here and Michael Goldman, who teaches here, is running his campaign. However, it is unlikely that students will ever have the opportunity to cast ballots for these three candidates.
Instead of fighting amongst each other, these three candidates should work together and force the Democratic Party to change this arcane practice and open up the system to anyone who gets the required signatures. These candidates have important messages to be heard and the Democratic Party needs to listen.
Massachusetts has been a Democratic stronghold for a long time now and yet Democrats have not controlled the Governor's office in 12 years. The party has really lost its way in this state and the establishment won't recognize that they need to change their ways if the expect to survive.
Success in any organization lies in the ability to adapt and find new creative ideas. Political parties are no different and must be able to find innovative solutions to social problems. Over the last 12 years it has been the Republicans who have come up with these new ideas and it has been the Democrats who have been fighting for the ways of old.
I attribute this old time thinking directly to their nomination process. New ideas can't get into the system because new candidates are pushed out before they have the chance to be heard. The Tom Birminghams of the world have been involved in Massachusetts politics for so long that they cannot come up with new ideas. Voters are not too excited about an insider who isn't ready to improve on the status quo. Businesses are no different. It is rare that a new CEO is chosen from within a company because the Board often wants a new outside perspective for the company. Universities also often hire a new President from outside of their current employees because they too want a new perspective.
It is my belief that this closed system actually has its roots in student movements. Massachusetts has so many college students that they could become a real political force if they were ever mobilized. The Democratic Party has traditionally had problems when large student groups have tried to mobilize a shift in their thinking, particularly in 1968 at their convention in Chicago. This battle was a similar one about a closed process that did not allow new ideas to be heard and left out students. In Massachusetts that process has persisted and it maybe it is time for us to protest the closed process in this state.
The Democratic Party shouldn't need a protest to realize that they are excluding the new ideas that they desperately need. The time is now and the place is here, let's open up the process and build an inclusive party for the 21st century.
